Demand for networked and internet-based media/content is rising. In addition, the number and types of media sources available to end-users continues to grow rapidly and for various reasons. For instance, the amount of quality content made available to end-users is increasing, and advances in technology make it easier for the content distributors and providers to make the media content widely available. The types of sources of media is also increasing, and may include virtually any source of networked or internet-based media content, such as content stored on a networked storage device or PC (running, e.g., a Windows, Apple, or other operating system) and/or content from free or subscription-based internet media portals.
In part, the demand for networked and internet-based media is rising due to the quality and types of content now available to the end-users. This content may include any type of content distributed or provided over a network or internet-based system, such as audio (e.g., music, radio programming or content, audio books, podcasts, educational audio, etc.), video (television programming or content, movies, music videos, HD television programming or content, 3D television programming or content, etc.), and/or text and pictures (newspaper subscriptions, blog feeds or content, etc.). Many other examples of content exist, but a key development in the demand for these types of content is the quality and ease of use of the enabling technology and the variety of quality content made available to the end-users.
Another reason for the rise in the demand for content is the convenience of access to the end-user to the new sources of media content. Examples of these sources include media/content distributors and providers such as iTunes, Netflix, AppleTV, Pandora, Hulu, LastFM, in addition to the traditional content sources such as the national broadcast and cable television networks and broadcast radio, and any other companies that provide or distribute media content to end-users. These distributors and providers often take advantage of the ability to provide a personalized end-user experience to allow the end-users to customize the media experience to conform to individual preferences.
Advances in media-rendering technology make the media experience more enjoyable to end-users. Media rendering devices include a variety of product categories, such as networked TVs, IP Set Top Boxes, networked consumer electronic (CE) devices and/or networked portable devices. These devices may allow end-users to experience the media in a variety of ways and at nearly any point in time. For instance, an end-user might listen to an mp3 player while riding a bus to work, and then watch a 3D television program at home later in the day. In general, users have more access to a wide variety of media content from many types of sources than ever before.
But as the media content becomes more widely-accessible, managing the content becomes more difficult due to the fragmented and uncoordinated nature of the storage medium and internet-based sources. In part, this is due to the different design approaches taken by the different media content providers/distributors. The fragmented nature of the content/media often leads to the non-interoperability of media storage devices such as a Digital Living Network Alliance (“DLNA”) server, iTunes server, Net based digital lockers, etc. In addition, in some cases, there may be multiple copies or sources for the same content or, in other cases, the rendering device may limit the availability of some content. For instance, a particular song might stored in MP3 format on a Windows PC in iTunes, but stored in Advanced Audio Coding (“AAC”) format on a hand-held device.
Typically, end-users use some sort of ad-hoc or hierarchal file structure on storage media (e.g., Network Media Storage, PC/Win, iTunes, etc.) to manage media content. Some Internet-based media service providers (e.g., Pandora) provide tools for users to define their preferences and assist in searching available media content provided by that specific service provider. But these tools are inconsistent across platforms, and there are many different ways in which existing media servers might learn about the end-user's preferences. For instance, Pandora uses a thumbs-up thumbs-down approach, LastFM uses “spoofing” to keep track of songs listened from various sources, iTunes uses a ranking and comparison methodology, etc. Often the end-user must maintain multiple but similar versions of their preferred media experience profile (e.g., preferences) on multiple platforms and service provider systems because a profile on one platform (e.g., iTunes) may be incompatible with another (e.g., Pandora) based on the current design approaches.
In addition, depending on the way in which the end-user is experiencing the content, the fragmented hierarchal file structure on various storage media might negatively affect the efficiency of the system and the ultimate experience of the end-user experience. For instance, it might be difficult for an end-user to sort through a long list of files or multiple lists of files on different media serves (for example stored on a Win7 server, iTunes, universal plug-and-play (“upnp”)/DLNA media server, etc.) without any coherent way to present and sort through the files.
Thus, current methods of managing and searching of media content and Internet-based sources of media are often redundant, fragmented, and lacking in efficiency. These methods often lack the use of metadata for some or all of user-owned and stored content. These methods also often lack the storage of compatible metadata from one platform to another platform or application. Thus, these methods limit how user preferences might be applied from one platform to another. As described above, it is often necessary for the end-user to enter the same or similar user preferences multiple times using different methods on different media servers.
Further compounding the problems explained above are various problems associated with managing multiple users on the same devices or networks. For instance, it can be difficult for one end-user to use a device that is customized with his or her specific user preferences, and then another end-user to use the same device customized with his or her specific user preferences. And for network-based services, it can be difficult for a device to access the user profiles unless connected to the Internet, because user profiles are often not available on local devices. There is a clear need for a good consumer experience such that preferences can be applied even if the local device should become unconnected from the network. Clearly, a need exists for a comprehensive user profile that addresses these problems.